Recaps

Han Mingxuan returned to Terra to stop Black Pelt from interfering with fate and began forging a weapon from the four gods’ Positive Authorities, his own power, and the Dark King’s divine seat. He left the Dark King engulfed in flames, while the true effects of the forging began in the Warp.

• Han Mingxuan told Night Haunter to train his troops, then went with Sinleech to Terra.
• Han Mingxuan incapacitated Mortarion and Magnus at the Department of Internal Affairs and summoned Sanguinius back to guard Terra.
• Han Mingxuan confronted Black Pelt in the Throne Room, and the Dark King rejected the possibility of cooperation.
• Han Mingxuan combined the four gods’ Positive Authorities with his own power and the Dark King’s divine seat to forge a sword.
• Han Mingxuan set the Golden Throne ablaze, and the flames began working their true effects in the Warp.

The Four Chaos Gods saw golden light eroding the black sun above Terra and suspected that the returning God of Wisdom and Miracle was trying to destroy the Dark King. After Tzeentch foresaw his own death, the gods decided to gamble on stopping the sun’s destruction by involving the entire Warp.

• Tzeentch summoned Nurgle, Slaanesh, and Khorne after cracks appeared in the Crystal Palace and he foresaw the Warp’s destruction.
• The Four Chaos Gods saw golden light covering and eroding the black sun above Terra.
• Nurgle suggested that the returning lord was the God of Wisdom and Miracle, and Tzeentch denied that the being could possess enough Positive Authority.
• Tzeentch foresaw his own death by his own sword and tried unsuccessfully to contact Magnus so he could destroy Terra.
• Tzeentch proposed trapping the lord as they had trapped the Ultramarines’ lord during the Siege of Terra, and the gods agreed that every Daemon and god in the Warp had to take part.

Han Mingxuan burned the Dark King with Positive Authorities, restoring some of the Emperor’s humanity while trapping him on the Golden Throne. As the Warp’s Chaos forces gathered for a counterattack, Han planned to bring True Gods from another timeline through the passage, and Trazyn and Imotekh argued over who should go first.

• The Chaos Gods and Daemons united to prepare a counterattack as the Black King warned Han Mingxuan that changing his godhood would devastate the Warp.
• Han Mingxuan dismissed the Black King's threats, and the Positive Authorities began burning him while the Emperor felt his humanity returning.
• Han Mingxuan told the Emperor to handle Konrad Curze's return, then Sinleech reported that six thousand Vengeful Spirits were gathering.
• Han Mingxuan proposed bringing the other three True Gods through the passage to counter the Warp's Chaos Gods.
• Trazyn and Imotekh contacted Han Mingxuan and argued over whose forces should cross first, while Xiulikas advised summoning the Primarchs before choosing.

Trazyn and Xiulikas explained that only people with low enough Fate Weight could cross the unstable passage to Han Mingxuan’s timeline, and the Primarchs began selecting a small first group of reinforcements. Curze chose four Eighth Legion members and started their special training ahead of the planned departure in five months.

• Trazyn told the gathered leaders that the passage to Han Mingxuan’s timeline was beginning to stabilize, but its limited Fate Capacity restricted who could go.
• Xiulikas recommended Han Mingxuan’s Private Guard, Urtana, some Eighth Legion veterans, Nova, and other low-Fate-Weight candidates, while warning that the Primarchs and their retinue armies could not yet cross.
• Xiulikas estimated that no more than three hundred people could be sent, recommended a maximum of two hundred and eighty, and set the first departure for five months later.
• Curze chose Nova, Slazov, Laxus, and Weiss to support Han Mingxuan, ordering them to find and protect him and take orders only from him.
• Curze began intensive training for the four, including individual instruction, enhancements from Nostramo’s Archmagos, and a requirement to survive ten minutes against Sevatar.
• The other Primarchs also began intensive training for their selected reinforcements.

The Legions prepared elite reinforcements for the newly stabilized passage between the 30K and 40K eras while Curze and Slaanesh oversaw harsh training. In 40K, the Night Haunter learned that support was coming soon and put Punishment Star on full combat alert.

• Valdor began training selected warriors from seventeen Legions to reach roughly Sigismund's level within five months, while Curze proposed sending survivors of the harshest battlefields as reinforcements.
• The Primarchs agreed to Curze's plan, and the selected warriors gathered aboard the Nightfall for accelerated training; Tu'en was assigned to focus on recruits from the Dawn Army Group.
• Jia and Slaanesh taught Urtana how to identify and kill women who might approach Old Han, and Slaanesh gave her a powerful blessing against Slaanesh's followers.
• Han Mingxuan told the Night Haunter that the Emperor would use the Ecclesiarchy to clear his name and that the first 30K reinforcements would soon cross the stabilized passage.
• The Night Haunter ordered Sevatar to place Punishment Star on the highest state of combat readiness, then went to find Corvus.

As Nova’s group prepared to cross into Han Mingxuan’s world, Xiulikas and Szarekh gave Nova and Urtana instructions for finding and serving Han. Han Mingxuan guided the travelers through fate with a torch, and Nova’s party neared the passage’s exit as Han sensed their arrival.

• Xiulikas gave Nova a sheath to guide him to Han Mingxuan and reminded him to leave a coordinate halfway through the passage.
• Szarekh told Urtana to follow Han Mingxuan’s orders and oppose any Necrons who threatened him, while Urtana explained how strongly she wanted to return to Han.
• Xiulikas led the group through a passage opened by the Golden Throne, assigning Nova and Old Kamon to scout ahead and Slazov to bring up the rear.
• Han Mingxuan sensed the reinforcements’ journey and placed a torch at Punishment Star’s Mandeville Point to guide them out of the passage.
• Nova followed the sheath and his Psychic Power talent, marked a coordinate at the passage’s center, and led the group toward a distant firelight.
• After waiting five or six days with the Night Haunter, Han Mingxuan sensed the travelers drawing close and said they had arrived.

Han Mingxuan welcomed Nostramo-descended reinforcements from another timeline, but a Warp storm interrupted their reunion. The newcomers charged into the Warp and routed the Daemons, while the Night Lords prepared to test their strength.

• Fewer than three hundred Nostramo-descended warriors emerged from the Mandeville Point, reunited with Han Mingxuan, and hailed him as the Father of Night.
• Old Kamon apologized for failing to protect Han Mingxuan, but Han Mingxuan told him that neither he nor the Primarchs could have stopped the Emperor's plans.
• A Warp storm began to form around Punishment Star, and Han Mingxuan's Private Guard surrounded him as the newcomers organized for battle.
• Nova, Laxus, and Weiss led the Nostramo-descended warriors in tearing open a rift and charging into the Warp with swords bearing the Chaos Purge Decree.
• Urtana brought Han Mingxuan his familiar chair, and he sat to rest while the Night Lords watched and considered sparring with the reinforcements.
• The first sign of the squad's victory came when Daemon heads began emerging from the Warp Rift.

Nostramo-descended reinforcements emerged from the Warp after destroying its daemons and joined the Night Haunter on Punishment Star. When the Night Lords challenged their strength, Slazov accepted a spar, and the reinforcements turned their attention to two people in their own group.

• The Dawn Army Group's Special Operations Squad emerged with the heads of slain Greater Daemons and reported to Han Mingxuan that the Warp Storm had been cleared.
• Han Mingxuan's reinforcements met the Night Haunter, and Nova Spes identified them as members of the Eighth Legion from Nostramo.
• Slazov introduced himself as a retired veteran, a civil servant, and Nostramo's strongest real estate salesman, leaving the Night Lords confused.
• The Night Lords challenged Slazov to a spar to test the reinforcements, and Slazov agreed while asking them to set clear rules.
• The Night Lords offered Slazov the choice of rules, and the reinforcements smiled as they looked at two people in their own group.

Laxus and Weiss arranged an Octagon tournament between the visiting Midnight Reapers and the Night Lords, while the Night Haunter allowed the contest but barred Sevatar and the other Grand Company Commanders from participating. The Night Lords were overwhelmed by the Octagon defenders, including fighters who seemed to turn the arena itself against them.

• Laxus and Weiss set rules for an Octagon tournament, and Laxus requested five arenas for the contest.
• The Night Haunter approved the tournament to assess the gap between the forces but ordered Sevatar and the other Grand Company Commanders not to fight.
• Han Mingxuan and Urtana arrived at the plaza and saw battered Night Lords being thrown from the Octagons.
• After more than a dozen rounds, nearly a hundred Night Lords had been beaten by the defenders, whom they compared to hundreds of Sigismunds.
• The Night Lords described how two defenders used the Octagon's surroundings to knock opponents out in under a minute, leading them to say that the Octagon fought back.

Sahar, the Night Lords’ Master of the Claws, challenged Slazov to a spar after learning about his counterpart in the Midnight Reapers. Slazov accepted and began instructing Sahar in the Octagon, while Sahar realized how far outmatched he was.

• The Night Haunter forbade Sevatar from sparring and allowed Sahar to represent the Night Lords instead.
• Sahar asked Slazov about his counterpart being held back, and Slazov explained the reserve training system on Nostramo.
• Sahar asked Slazov to spar, and Slazov agreed to meet him in the Octagon.
• Sahar charged Slazov, who dodged and corrected his angle and force.
• Slazov told Sahar to watch his joints and movements, and Sahar barely dodged the next attack.

Sahar fought Slazov in the Octagon while Laxus and Weiss plotted to provoke Sevatar into confronting Nova. The Night Haunter caught the scheming pair and took them to face Father of Night for disrupting harmony between the Legions.

• Sahar kept fighting Slazov for two and a half hours as the crowd cheered, while Laxus and Weiss recognized that the Civil Servant was training him.
• Laxus and Weiss decided to steer Sevatar toward challenging Nova by praising the Evernight Legion and suggesting that Nova was its strongest recruit.
• Sevatar stopped Laxus and Weiss to ask about Nova and the difference in strength between himself and the Evernight Legion.
• Laxus and Weiss pretended they needed to relieve themselves, then hid nearby to watch for Sevatar's reaction.
• The Night Haunter caught Laxus and Weiss, punched Laxus, and ordered them to come with him to see Father of Night for disrupting harmony between the Legions.

Han Mingxuan arranged for members of the Midnight Reapers to train the Night Lords after their legion’s sparring matches, while Laxus and Weiss agreed to help. Sevatar challenged Nova to a spar, and Nova worried that fighting him could undermine the Boss’s dignity.

• Han Mingxuan learned that Sevatar had gone to challenge Nova and decided the contest could help the Night Lords recognize the gap between the legions.
• Konrad revealed that Laxus and Weiss had provoked Sevatar into challenging Nova, and Han Mingxuan proposed that they instruct the Night Lords after the sparring matches.
• Han Mingxuan explained that instructors could help the reborn Night Lords recover from the blow of losing to the Midnight Reapers, and Konrad accepted his arrangements.
• Han Mingxuan told Laxus and Weiss to inform the Council of the Long Night about a secret, and they agreed to prepare a training plan with Nova.
• Sevatar asked Nova about his counterpart in another world, then challenged him to spar; Nova refused at first because he feared the fight would threaten the Boss’s dignity.

Nova effortlessly defeated Sevatar’s attacks, explained that his psychic gift countered precognition, and agreed to train him. The Night Haunter then announced that the Evernight Legion would operate openly in the Imperium and train the Night Lords.

• Sevatar attacked Nova, but Nova repeatedly evaded him and held a dagger to his neck, leaving Sevatar unable to fight back.
• Sevatar asked whether everyone in the Evernight Legion was so strong, and Nova said he was its only recruit because the legion never lost members.
• Sevatar asked Nova to become his instructor, and Nova agreed to teach him martial skills.
• Nova explained that his psychic gift, A Sliver of Life, naturally countered precognitive abilities like Sevatar’s Prophecy.
• The Night Haunter addressed the Night Lords, announced that the Evernight Legion would operate openly in the Imperium, and assigned its members to train them.

The Night Lords accepted the Evernight Legion as their instructor, while the Night Haunter left their return to the Imperium dependent on passing Nova’s assessments. Han Mingxuan resurrected the Silent King’s second group of candidates, but Urtana attacked the Silent King when he offered them as Han’s new attendants.

• The Night Haunter put Nova in charge of the Night Lords’ training and said they could return after passing one round of assessments.
• Han Mingxuan reassured Kamon that he did not blame him for failing to stop the Emperor and said he wanted to destroy the Warp.
• Kamon told Han Mingxuan that the Silent King had arrived with another group of candidates, and Han agreed to resurrect them.
• The Silent King presented the newly resurrected women as Han Mingxuan’s proposed security and attendants, prompting Urtana to wound him and threaten to kill him.
• Han Mingxuan stopped Urtana, reaffirmed his agreement with the Silent King, and watched him leave suspecting that his counterpart from another timeline was guarding against him.

Han Mingxuan learned that Slaanesh and Jia had prompted Urtana to approach him, then oversaw the creation of a body for a captured wisp of the Great Devourer’s will. As the wisp transformed inside a cocoon, the Great Devourer redirected its Hive Fleets toward Punishment Star to recover it, bringing the Second Tyrannic War sooner than Han Mingxuan expected.

• Urtana told Han Mingxuan that Slaanesh and Jia had instructed her to approach him, citing Jia’s concern that his genes must not be scattered across other timelines.
• Han Mingxuan brought Urtana and the others to a laboratory aboard the Father of the Evernight, where Krete prepared to give the captured wisp of the Great Devourer’s will a body.
• Han Mingxuan ordered Urtana to teach the new being about humanity and destroy it if it displayed improper behavior, while planning for it to develop new Tyranid warriors.
• The wisp fused with its body inside a cocoon, and Han Mingxuan took the cocoon with him on Krete’s advice.
• The Great Devourer sensed satisfaction from the lost individual consciousness and ordered its Hive Fleets to change course for Punishment Star and recover it.

Inquisitor Wilchatu prepared to use Exterminatus against a Tyranid fleet and a lured Ork force near Old Nostramo, while worrying about the Father of Night’s possible connection to the Night Lords. He then learned that the Ordo Hereticus had raised suspicions about Imperial Chancellor Sinleech, leaving him to examine evidence of strange Warp fluctuations around Holy Terra.

• Wilchatu reviewed the plan to lure Orks into battle with the Tyranids before using Exterminatus to destroy both forces.
• Wilchatu recalled Nostramo’s destruction and wondered whether the Father of Night was connected to the Eighth Legion and its former name, the Sons of Night.
• Wilchatu’s attendant reported a large population migration in Segmentum Obscurus that Sinleech had personally directed and approved.
• Wilchatu learned that the Ordo Hereticus had submitted an investigation linking Sinleech to intermittent Warp fluctuations around Holy Terra.
• Wilchatu’s attendant reported that the fluctuations peaked during Sinleech’s first administrative overhaul and decreased whenever the Father of Night appeared in the Imperium.

Inquisitor Wilchatu investigated reports of Warp fluctuations on Holy Terra as Sinleech warned Han Mingxuan that an Ordo Xenos Inquisitor was heading to Punishment Star. A Tyranid Hive Fleet was also approaching, and the chapter left Han preparing to face both threats.

• Wilchatu took the reports of nine-point Warp fluctuations on Holy Terra seriously and ordered his forces to investigate a mass migration.
• Sinleech told Han Mingxuan that he had leaked information about the migration to prepare for the Eighth Legion’s return, but Sanguinius and Huangpizi had blocked most investigations into Han.
• Han learned that an Ordo Xenos Inquisitor would investigate him on Punishment Star because the Ordo Hereticus could not act.
• Sinleech reported that a Tyranid Hive Fleet was heading toward Punishment Star and that the Inquisition planned to draw it and an Ork force to Old Nostramo.
• Han accepted that the Hive Fleet was coming for him and said the Inquisitor could come as well.

Han Mingxuan organized defenses on Punishment Star against the approaching Hive Fleet and Orks, bringing in the Ninth Legion and assigning reconnaissance and reinforcements. The arrival of Inquisitor Wilchatu ended in terror when he spotted the Night Lords’ battleship Nightfall in orbit.

• Han Mingxuan told Sinleech to contain Chaos’s minor forces while he dealt with the other threats.
• Han Mingxuan asked Sanguinius to bring the Ninth Legion to Punishment Star, warned him about the Orks, and offered supplies for Dante to collect.
• Han Mingxuan ordered Urtana to prepare a thousand Staffs, tasked Kamon with receiving an Imperial Inquisitor, and sent Slazov to inspect nearby planets for signs of 30k-era social behavior.
• Han Mingxuan’s forces began their preparations while the Night Lords followed the Night Haunter’s instruction not to ask questions.
• Inquisitor Wilchatu approached Punishment Star intending to claim it, then became horrified when he saw the Nightfall alongside the Father of the Evernight in orbit.

Inquisitor Wilchatu mobilized Imperial forces after the Night Lords and their flagship appeared near Punishment Star, then entered the planet undercover to investigate. Convinced that Chaos and Genestealer corruption were working together, he feared Punishment Star could become the next Eye of Terror.

• Wilchatu ordered the Ordo Xenos, Ordo Hereticus, and other Imperial forces to mobilize, while sending a trusted squad disguised as refugees to Punishment Star.
• Wilchatu and his squad discovered that Punishment Star had become an orderly paradise and heard that the Father of Night had arranged it as a gift for the Night Haunter with the Necrons.
• Weiss learned that Inquisition agents had infiltrated the planet and was told to let them investigate unless they caused trouble.
• Kamon prepared the Thunder Warriors to defend the planet and learned that Ordo Xenos and Ordo Hereticus forces were approaching.
• Wilchatu concluded that Punishment Star showed signs of both Genestealer activity and Chaos corruption, and feared it could become the next Eye of Terror.

The Inquisition’s forces arrived at Punishment Star, where Kamon’s Shadowbat Guard captured them before they could attack. Three months later, the Night Haunter revealed to Wilchatu that he had been monitoring him and brought him to meet Han Mingxuan, who invited the Inquisitor to ask his question.

• The Inquisitors suspected the Imperial Chancellor had arranged a Warp sacrifice and prepared to die destroying a Daemon nest.
• Kamon and the Shadowbat Guard disarmed and bound the Inquisitors, then moved out to confront the Deathwatch without killing them.
• After three months on Punishment Star, Wilchatu tried to contact his reinforcements, but Kamon told him they were fast asleep.
• The Night Haunter appeared to Wilchatu, explained that Fear Inducement had let him watch the Inquisitor from the start, and ordered him to prepare for a meeting.
• The Night Haunter led Wilchatu and his people to Han Mingxuan, who asked why the Inquisitor had nothing to say after meeting him.

Han Mingxuan tried to secure the Inquisition’s cooperation, then brought its forces to Terra to address the High Lords directly. The Emperor’s voice ordered them to follow Han Mingxuan’s plans and granted redemption to Curze and his Scions.

• Wilchatu questioned Han Mingxuan, who declared that the Imperium and its Emperor did not matter and proposed cooperating with the Inquisition; Urtana punished Wilchatu when he resisted.
• Han Mingxuan gave Sanguinius a Blackstone ring containing a supernova and explained that it could be used against the Orks and Tyranids.
• Wilchatu’s attempt to identify Han Mingxuan using the ashes of a Living Saint failed, and Urtana silenced him as the Inquisitors were taken away.
• Han Mingxuan gathered the Inquisition’s available forces and traveled through the Warp to Terra, where he demanded the High Lords’ cooperation.
• The Emperor spoke through a Sister of Battle, commanding the High Lords to follow Han Mingxuan’s arrangements and granting Curze and his Scions redemption and forgiveness.

After the God-Emperor’s intervention made the High Lords accept Han Mingxuan’s authority, Han prepared the Imperium for a vast war against Chaos and the Tyranids. He sent Corvus Corax and his Scions into T’au territory with a thousand unstable supernovae, ordering them to cripple key worlds if the T’au interfered.

• The God-Emperor possessed the Sisters of Battle Superior, and the High Lords submitted to Han Mingxuan’s instructions to mobilize for the battle site chosen by the Inquisition.
• Han told Sinleech to aid the Imperium’s Warp travel, release two Daemon Princes into the Administratum, and expand Chaos’s influence while preparing for a war involving numerous factions.
• Han asked the Emperor to awaken the Lion, then traveled to Deliverance to meet Corvus Corax.
• Han gave Corvus a Dimensional Space containing a thousand supernovae and ordered him and his Scions to place them along key T’au routes and detonate them if the T’au made an unusual move.
• Corvus challenged Han’s willingness to cause mass casualties, but Han invoked the Evernight Code and insisted that every cruel means should be used against the Imperium’s enemies.

Han Mingxuan prepared allies and weapons for the coming war, then sent Sanguinius to awaken Lion El'Jonson on The Rock. Sanguinius presented the Emperor's secret order to Azrael, and Lion appeared as the Dark Angels stood on the brink of battle.

• Han Mingxuan arranged for Necrons to destroy the T'au Empire if Corvus failed, and ordered veteran warriors to use the Teeth of Gork and Mork against the Orks.
• Han Mingxuan sent Sanguinius to wake Lion El'Jonson on The Rock and deliver a secret order from Sinleech.
• Krete showed Han Mingxuan a stockpile of fifty thousand Supernova Staffs and Space-Collapse Bombs, while Han Mingxuan assigned the Silent King to hunt Aeldari and find Yvraine.
• Sanguinius and Dante presented the secret order to Azrael, who refused to let the Blood Angels descend to The Rock's lowest level.
• A figure carrying Lion's greatsword appeared as the Dark Angels and Sanguinius reached the brink of battle.

Sanguinius and the Dark Angels ventured into the Rock’s deepest secrets, guided by Dante and a group of Watchers in the Dark. They found the Lion by a river, where Sanguinius was struck by how old and frail his brother had become.

• Lord Cypher revealed himself to Sanguinius, who recognized him as Corswain and allowed him to observe the Ninth Legion.
• Azrael asked Sanguinius what they were seeking in the Rock’s lower levels, but Sanguinius said they had only been ordered to go there and would have to trust fate.
• A thick white mist covered the group, and Dante directed them to follow the sound of running water, saying they would soon see the Lion.
• The group followed a boat carrying hooded dwarfs, the Watchers in the Dark, to a landing beside a river.
• They found Lion El'Jonson sitting by the river with a shield and greatsword, and he told Sanguinius he had woken earlier than expected.
• Sanguinius greeted his brother, then saw his aged appearance and said, “Big Brother, you've grown old.”

Lion El'Jonson reunited with Sanguinius and met his Dark Angels, then learned how the Imperium had changed during his absence. Azrael revealed his suspicion that the Imperium Chancellor might be a Chaos God, and Lion considered the Emperor's dealings with such powers.

• Lion El'Jonson recognized Sanguinius as his long-dead brother and said he needed to meet the Father of Evernight.
• Sanguinius left Lion alone with the Dark Angels and told Dante that the Imperium had improved, though several returned Primarchs and powerful officials could bring complications.
• Lion pardoned his Scions' past transgressions and asked them to explain the Imperium's recent history.
• Azrael told Lion that Dante had changed after awakening, a Living Saint had become Imperium Chancellor, and a brief, terrifying Warp storm preceded the Chancellor's appointment.
• Azrael revealed his belief that the Chancellor might be a Chaos God, and Lion suspected the Emperor had made another necessary bargain with Chaos.